Menu

Healthcare Reprocessing of Medical Devices and Human Factors Debrief presented at MD&M West

The reusable medical device industry is facing challenges regarding device design considerations and usability. The demand for more complex devices has led to the introduction of devices that are difficult to reprocess. These design advances have impacted the sterile processing units in hospitals. Sterile processing department personnel who perform the reprocessing steps and the conditions they work in are referred to as human factor considerations. Complex medical device designs and other enhancements that do not take these human factor considerations into account may make it difficult, or even impossible, for hospitals to clean, disinfect and sterilize these devices in an effective manner.